The Executive Vice Chairman of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC),  Dr Adamu Abdullahi has boasted that the commission is receiving international praise as a completion authority in Africa.

The Commission said it has in the last seven months, actively worked to prevent anticompetitive practices, protect consumers, and foster a competitive market.

Speaking at a news conference in Abuja on Tuesday, the acting Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Dr Adamu Abdullahi said that the penalty was slammed on the companies after three years of intensive investigations.

”We are getting international accolades that at last, there is a competition authority in Africa that is standing against all these anti-competitive practices by multinational agencies.

On his achievements through his seven months tenure as the acting EVC of the Commission, he said that FCCPC implemented measures to curb price gouging, promote fair competition and protect consumers.

Abdullahi said the Commission had also carried out a review of the stand-alone curriculum for consumer education in secondary schools across the country.

He also explained why the $200 million fine against Meta Platforms Inc (Facebook) and WhatsApp LLC saying it was based on discriminatory practices and sanctionable offences committed.

The FCCPC boss said the companies were found culpable of denying Nigerian data subjects the right to self-determination, unauthorised transfer and sharing of personal data which was not the practice in other climes.

Abdullahi stated that the companies gave options to data subjects in other climes to decide whether their data would be shared or not.

According to him, only last week, FCCPC issued a final order and imposed a monetary penalty of $220,000,000.00 (Two Hundred and Twenty Million USD) against Meta Platforms Inc. and WhatsApp LLC over discriminatory practices in Nigeria.

”This is an investigation that has taken place for the past three years and I was part of it.

”We found out that when you register for the first time to join WhatsApp, there is a column that says you have agreed for your data to be shared for research.

”That is opposed to other climes where you have the choice of saying yes or no, that is discriminatory at the first instance.

”Secondly, we found out that they share our data across platforms,” he said.

He said the Commission was already getting international accolades for the investigation and sanction.

He said the Commission introduced sensitisation for traditional and religious leaders and other stakeholders to enhance capacity and empower them as consumer protection agents in their localities.

The FCCPC published its final order in which it imposed a penalty of $220 million and a reimbursement fee of $35,000 on WhatsApp LLC and Meta Platforms, Inc.

The penalty is for violations of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) and the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR), following a joint investigation conducted by the FCCPC and Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC).

“Our efforts included enforcing the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA), reviewing mergers, conducting investigations, and engaging in consumer and business education, among others.Actions on Fair Food Pricing and Enforcement Against Deceptive PracticesTo address public concerns over soaring food prices, the FCCPC implemented measures to curb price gouging, promote fair competition, and protect consumers.

“We monitored markets, partnered with stakeholders, enforced pricing transparency, and sensitised consumers. We also took action against underweight bags of rice, the sale of expired goods, cement price hikes, substandard iron rods, and alleged discriminatory practices in a Chinese supermarket.”

According to him, the most common consumer complaints in the electricity industry include exploitative billing, unlawful disconnection, non-metering of customers, lack of transformers and other salient issues.

”Given the relevance of electricity as a critical utility, the Commission prioritised intervention in the industry to tackle prevailing issues and improve service delivery.

”This we did by implementing various programmes and initiatives aimed at promoting transparency and accountability in the sector,” he said.

Abdullahi said the Commission would continue to work tirelessly to promote competition and protect consumers to create a vibrant economy that would benefit both businesses and citizens.

The CEO of the FCCPC noted that these efforts underscored the government’s dedication to safeguarding Nigerian consumers and fostering a fair marketplace, adding that the Commission was implementing data analysis techniques to systematically analyse consumer complaints to help in identifying patterns of unfair practices, leading to targeted interventions and improved consumer protection measures.

Abdullahi further explained that the Commission continued to advocate for the rights of Nigerian consumers, particularly in the digital money lending industry, while implementing the Limited Interim Regulatory/Registration Framework and Guidelines for Digital Lending to regulate the activities of Digital Money Lenders (DMLs), otherwise referred to as loan sharks.

“On Friday, May 17, 2024, the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos delivered a landmark judgment, convicting Dr. Anuoluwapo Funmilayo Adepoju and MedContour Services Limited on all five counts of obstructing an investigation by the FCCPC.

“The Court upheld the FCCPC’s broad investigative powers under the FCCPA, ruling that the FCCPA applies to “all undertakings and all commercial activities” within Nigeria, including health services related to consumer protection.

This judgment strengthened the FCCPC’s authority to investigate consumer rights violations across all sectors, including healthcare, and serves as a warning to businesses that impede or obstruct regulatory investigations.In another development, the Federal High Court struck out a lawsuit filed by the Centre for Social Justice Ltd/Gte against the FCCPC in Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/1210/2020,” the FCCPC boss recalled.